TENACITY

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

Monday, October 17, 2023
Trey's House

A few hours ago...

Lexi sat up suddenly, wondering why she'd woken up. Something had caused it, she knew, but what exactly it was, she had no idea. After scanning the lit room and realizing no one was there and nothing was out of place, she lay back down to see if sleep would return.

It didn't, and after staring up at the ceiling for some minutes, she remembered she hadn't gone to bed alone. Trey. He wasn't by her side, and that made her wonder what time it was. She turned onto her side and stared at the digital clock on the bedside table.

12:17 pm.

She fell out of the bed, startled. Then she rubbed her eyes and looked again, but nothing changed—well, until the seventeen switched to eighteen. She got off the floor and headed straight for the bathroom.

How could she have slept so much when her kids had been abducted?

No wonder Trey was already out of bed. But why hadn't he woken her? With a frustrated cry, she squeezed some paste onto her brush and set about taking off her clothes. There was no time to lose.

After her bath, she got dressed quickly and picked up her phone, wondering if Trey or anyone else had left a text. She skimmed through the texts from Ashley, Sierra and Melissa; they all said the same thing. They wanted to know if she was okay, and that she could talk to them when she felt like it.

She thought about leaving it and replying later, but thinking she was going to be busy helping Trey find their kids, she surmised that she might not have time for it later. She made quick work of creating a group with them four, then typed out a reply:

I'm fine, so please stop worrying. I'm going to be busy so I might not be able to call or text anyone—which is good, because I don't particularly feel like talking. But I'll talk to you later and I'll update you once I know the progress we've made.

She reread it and didn't like how offhanded it sounded. So, she cleared it all up and wrote: I'm okay, and thanks for your concern. I have to go now though, but I'll talk to you later and update you on what is going on so far.

Satisfied, she sent the text and continued checking her other messages when she came across one from an unknown number. Her experience with unknown numbers made her heart thud in fear. Still, she opened the text.

You think you're so smart, involving your hound dog of a husband.

Her heart skipped a beat, because she knew exactly who the message was from. She began walking out the room, yelling for Trey.

But we've outsmarted him this time. He wouldn't see what is going on till it hits him in the face.

"Trey!" She checked out the rooms on the floor, and began hurrying down the stairs to the first floor? Why did the house look this deserted? What was going on?

You have no choice. If you want to meet and keep your precious darlings safe, follow these instructions to the latest.

"Trey, where are you?!" The frustration in her voice was climbing with every call of his name.

First, give a thumbs up to signify this has reached you, Alexa.

She exhaled through her nose and opened her contacts section, looking frantically for Trey's number. She was so shaken that she forgot she'd added him to her favorites, and when she remembered she was already on the ground floor.